U.S. military personnel arrive in Niger: Obama in letter to Congress from Reuters: Politics WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon has deployed about 100 troops to the West African nation of Niger to conduct unmanned reconnaissance flights over Mali and share intelligence with French forces fighting al Qaeda-affiliated militants, President Barack Obama told Congress on Friday. feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/PoliticsNews/~3/4oknKyEnpFU/us-usa-niger-forces-idUSBRE91L0NN20130222